Pole Attachment

ABSTRACT

The present invention consists of a bar with a mechanism at one end that serves a dual purpose: it allows the user to attach the bar in a non-permanent fashion to a ski pole shaft and it serves as a hinge so that the bar may be fixed in a position either parallel or transverse to the ski pole shaft. In the transverse position the device, when integrated with a ski pole, may be used by an experienced skier to either tow uphill or to control the speed of inexperienced skiers.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The invention provides a safe and convenient manner for an adult tocontrol the speed children skiing, or to aid children in surmountinginclines. The invention consists of a lightweight bar, approximatelyhalf the length of a typical adult ski pole, that may be attachednon-permanently to a ski pole shaft just above the ski pole basket in aposition either parallel (flush to the ski pole), or transverse withrespect to the ski pole (so that the ski pole and the bar form an Lshape). With the bar in the flush to the ski pole, the ski pole may beused normally. In the transverse position, however, the bar and ski polecombination form a hook that may be used to tow another person or tocontrol the speed of another person, thus allowing an experienced skierto aid an inexperienced skier to surmount inclines or to control theirspeed.

DISCUSSION OF PRIOR ART

When learning to ski, children often have difficulties surmounting themost modest inclines. Unaccustomed to skis and inexperienced in theiruse, they will often try to step forward, only to have their skis slideback as soon as they put their weight down. This results in a treadmilleffect; the child is walking but not advancing. The result isfrustration, anger and loss of appetite for the sport for both the childand the adult supervisor. To overcome this difficulty, the adultsupervisor will often extend his or her ski pole towards the childeither for the child to grasp with their hands, or to place the ski polebetween the legs of the child positioning the ski pole basket justbehind the child's posterior in order to pull the child forward. Ineither case, the result is a dangerous situation where the adult ispointing a sharp metal shaft directly at a child who may lurch forwardat any time, a risk that is exacerbated since the child is standing onskis to which he or she is unaccustomed. Added to this danger is theproblem that the child often finds it difficult to grasp the smooth skipole shaft with his or her hands, or difficult to clamp his or her legstogether to keep the ski pole basket from passing between their legs.The result is that the child tires quickly and/or simply lets go,resulting in more frustration for both child and adult.

Another difficulty faced by adults skiing with children who are learningto ski is that the children do not know how to control their speed asthey ski, and are not conscious of the dangers of excessive speed. Inaddition to the danger this situation represents, the strongacceleration experienced upon directing one's skis down a hill mayhinder the child's ability or motivation to learn to ski.

Prior art addressing these issues includes harnesses with leashes (see,for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,080,191). The harness is designed to fitover a child's torso and the leash is attached in the rear, allowing anexperienced skier to control the child's speed by skiing at a controlledspeed behind the child while holding the leash. The harness has severaldrawbacks.

First, since the leash attaches at the rear, it may be used to reducethe speed of the child by pulling on the leash from behind, but it isnot convenient to use the leash to pull the child forward, since theleash will wrap around the child's torso creating a torque and causingthe child to lose his or her balance.

In addition, the leash proves to be cumbersome and awkward to carryaround, especially while skiing with a child. The leash must be gatheredin at the end of each run, which proves to be an excellent way ofgetting one's gloves wet since the leash is often impregnated with snow.All this must be done while simultaneously supervising a child who isnot accustomed to their skis or to the mountain environment, leading toa stressful situation for the experienced skier.

In addition to the awkwardness of dealing with a leash, one is alsoobliged to install the harness on the child and to remove it. Puttingthe harness on a child often requires removing one's gloves, which islikely to lead to cold and wet hands (the harness is rarely dry itself).It also increments by one the number of items required to dress a childfor the sport. Once the harness is on, the child may find ituncomfortable or restrictive, and it reduces the insulation propertiesof winter garments by compressing them against the child's torso. Theentire process must be reversed each time the child wants to have theharness removed, which may often be in situations that are extremelyinconvenient for the adult supervisor, such as at the bottom of each skirun or even in the middle of a ski run. One is thus faced with thechoice of dealing with a frustrated child by leaving the harness on, orwith all the inconveniences of taking the harness off, neither choicebeing attractive. A final drawback of the harness and leash system isthat it may only be used with one child at a time.

The device described herein addresses the problem of towing a child onskis or controlling their speed in a simple and effective manner byproviding a tow-bar that may be integrated with a ski pole. This deviceallows one to tow or brake a child on skis in a manner that isconvenient and safe for both the adult and the child.

The device is lightweight, portable, and easily attached or unattachedfrom a ski pole. It requires no modification of the ski pole itself andmay be used with virtually any ski pole. Furthermore, the device avoidsthe dangerous situation of pointing a ski pole directly at a child byobliging the adult supervisor to direct the ski pole shaft to the sideof the child when offering to tow or brake the child.

The device allows an experienced skier easily to aid another skier inclimbing up gentle inclines or in controlling their speed. Furthermore,the device does not encumber the experienced skier to any great extent.It may be left attached to the ski pole permanently without any majorloss of performance of the ski pole, or it may easily be dismounted andstored in a backpack or locker, or passed to another person (forexample, from one parent to another).

The device clamps securely onto the majority of commercial ski poleshafts just above the ski pole basket in a position either ‘open’(transverse to the ski pole shaft, so that the ski pole and the tow-barfor an L shape, see FIG. 7) or ‘closed’ (parallel and flush to the skipole shaft, see FIG. 5).

In the open position the combination of the ski pole and the device forman L-shaped hook that may serve to tow another person. To do this, theperson towing positions themselves in front of the person to be towedand extends his or her ski pole back horizontally towards the hip of theperson to be towed, with the tow-bar directed vertically downward. Withthe tow-bar positioned behind the person to be towed, the tower twiststhe ski pole shaft so that the tow-bar becomes oriented in a horizontalposition just behind the person's posterior (see FIG. 8). With thetow-bar fitted securely behind the person's posterior, the tower cansimply pull the person along by pulling on the ski pole.

The device may also be used to control the speed of another person bypositioning oneself behind the person to be towed instead of in front(see FIG. 9).

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows an isometric view of a preferred embodiment of theinvention. The numbers correspond to the following components: 1) latch,2) bar, 3) hinge-clamp, 4) sliding lock, and 5) lock-slot.

FIG. 2 consists of a sequence of isometric views of the hinge-clamp 3.Each panel shows a view that is rotated 45 degrees about a vertical axiswith respect to the previous view (note the coordinate axes).

FIG. 3 consists of a sequence of drawings that illustrate how theinvention is attached to a ski pole shaft.

In FIG. 4, panel 4C is the same isometric drawing as panel 3C of FIG. 3.Panels 4A, 4B, and 4D display different isometric views of FIG. 3C (i.e.viewed from different angles).

FIG. 5A shows an isometric view of the invention attached in the closedposition to a ski pole shaft 13, just above the ski pole basket 14. FIG.5B shows an enlarged isometric view of the hinge-clamp 3 from a slightlydifferent angle.

FIG. 6 shows several isometric views of the device as the ski pole isrotated from the closed position (panels 6A and 6E) to the open position(panels 6D and 6H).

FIG. 7A shows an isometric view of the invention attached in the openposition to a ski pole shaft. FIG. 7B shows an enlarged isometric viewof the same thing from a slightly different angle.

FIG. 8 shows a possible use for the invention. In this figure, an adultskier is using the device to tow a child.

FIG. 9 shows another possible use for the invention. In this figure, anadult skier is using the invention to control the speed of a child onskis.

FIG. 10 shows an isometric view of an alternative embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 11 shows an expanded isometric view the mechanism for fixing thedevice to a ski pole shaft (in the closed position) for the alternativeembodiment.

FIG. 12 shows an expanded isometric view of the mechanism for fixing thedevice to a ski pole shaft (in the open position) for the alternativeembodiment.

FIG. 13 shows a different isometric view of the same thing as FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 contains four panels, 14A to 14D, which show different isometricviews of the mechanism for fixing the device to a ski pole for thealternative embodiment.

FIG. 15 shows a view with the hidden lines exposed of a part of themechanism for fixing the device to a ski pole for the alternativeembodiment.

REFERENCE NUMERALS FOR DRAWINGS

The following list gives the name for each part number.

(1) Latch

(2) Bar

(3) Hinge-clamp

(4) Sliding lock

(5) Lock slot

(6) Upper dove-tail tab

(7) Lower dove-tail tab

(8) Upper dove-tail grove

(9) Lower dove-tail grove

(10) Upper cavity

(11) Lower cavity

(12) Axis of rotation

(13) Ski pole shaft

(14) Ski pole basket

(15) Knuckle hinge-clamp

(16) Top knuckle

(17) Bottom knuckle

(18) Top leaf

(19) Bottom leaf

(20) Top leaf pin

(21) Bottom leaf pin

(22) Top shelf

(23) Bottom shelf

(24) Elastic strap

(25) Parallel ski pole slot

(26) Transverse ski pole slot

(27) Bar stop

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 shows the preferred embodiment of the device. It consists of alatch 1, an 18 inch cylindrical bar 2 with a diameter of 0.5 inches, ahinge-clamp 3, and a sliding lock 4 that slides into the lock-slot 5.The device may be affixed to a ski pole in a position either parallel ortransverse to the ski pole shaft, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 7,respectively. In the parallel position the device is said to be closed,and in the transverse position it is said to be open. The device may beconstructed from any number of materials, a possible combination beingaluminum for the bar and ABS plastic for the remaining pieces.

In FIG. 2 we show 8 isometric views of the hinge-clamp 3, with thesliding lock removed to show the lock-slot 5 and the upper and lowerdove-tail grooves (8 and 9, respectively). Each isometric view isrotated by 45 degrees with respect to the previous view (note thecoordinate axes that accompany each view). Also visible in this figureare the upper and lower cavities (10 and 11, respectively). When in use,the ski pole shaft is contained within these cavities, as will bediscussed shortly.

To attach the device to a ski pole shaft, the hinge-clamp is oriented sothat the lock-slot is parallel to the ski pole shaft 13, as shown inFIG. 3A. The sliding lock 4 is removed from the lock-slot by sliding itto the right, resulting in the situation shown in FIG. 3B. The ski poleshaft may then be inserted through the lock-slot into the hinge-clamp,as shown in FIG. 3C.

To make this step as clear as possible, we reproduce FIG. 3C in FIG. 4,panels A-D, where each panel in FIG. 4 shows a different view of FIG.3C. In FIG. 4A the hinge-clamp 3 is viewed looking down the ski poleshaft 13, and one can see the upper and lower dove-tail tabs (6 and 7,respectively) and the upper and lower dove-tail grooves (8 and 9,respectively) that allow the sliding lock to mate with the lock-slot.The mating of the dove-tail tabs with the dove-tail grooves allow thesliding lock to resist deformational forces acting on the hinge clamp.Rotating FIG. 4A we arrive at FIG. 4B, where one can see the uppercavity 10 of the hinge-clamp 3 (note that it is visible in FIG. 4A aswell). Rotating FIG. 4B we arrive at FIG. 4C, which is the same view asFIG. 3C. Further rotating the drawing brings us to FIG. 4D, where thelower cavity 11 is apparent. FIG. 4 shows clearly how the ski pole shaftfits through the lock-slot and into the upper and lower cavity spaces inthe hinge-clamp.

Returning to FIG. 3, we continue with FIG. 3D. With the ski pole shaftstill parallel to the lock-slot, the sliding lock may be inserted intothe lock-slot, as indicated by the arrow in the figure. With the slidinglock completely inserted, we have the situation shown in FIG. 3E. Thedevice may then be pivoted about the rotation axis 12 (this axis isperpendicular to the plane of the page) as indicated by the arrow inFIG. 3E so that it is parallel with the ski pole shaft, as shown FIG.3F. At this point the user simply pushes the hinge-clamp up the ski poleshaft (i.e. away from the ski pole basket, 14), as indicated by thearrow in FIG. 3F, until, due to the widening taper of the ski poleshaft, the hinge-clamp becomes wedged onto the ski pole shaft. This willprevent the device from rotating about the axis of the ski pole shaft,even when the device is in the open position.

The hinge-clamp allows the user to change the angular orientation of thebar with respect to the ski pole shaft (without detaching the devicefrom the ski pole shaft). It also provides the mechanical connection tofix the device in either the closed or open position, as shown in FIGS.5 and 7, respectively.

With the device in the closed position, as in FIG. 5A, the latch 1grasps the ski pole shaft and prevents the device from pivoting towardsthe open position. FIG. 5B shows an enlarged drawing of the hinge-clampshowing the upper cavity 10 through which the ski pole shaft passes ingoing from the closed to the open position.

The transition in going from the closed position to the open position isshown in FIG. 6. The left column of panels shows isometric views wherethe upper cavity 10 is visible, and the right column of panels showsisometric views showing the lower cavity 11. Between each row of panelsthe ski pole shaft is rotated 30 degrees in the hinge-clamp. In panels6D and 6H the ski pole shaft and the bar are perpendicular. This figureshows how the ski pole shaft passes through the upper and lower cavitiesas the device is rotated from the closed to the open position.

Finally, an enlarged view of the device in the open position ispresented in FIG. 7A, and FIG. 7B shows an additional isometric viewwhere the upper cavity 10 is visible.

Operation of Invention

To use the invention, one first attaches it to a ski pole shaft, andpositions it in the open position, as described above. The device maythen be used in combination with the ski pole to tow or brake anotherpersons as depicted in FIGS. 8 and 9, respectively.

The fact that the hinge-clamp is wedged onto the ski pole shaft isimportant to the operation of the device. The friction of thisconnection allows the user to orient the bar by twisting the ski pole.Thus, to use the bar for braking, the user extends the ski pole shafthorizontally in front of them, then orients the bar so that it ispointed downwards. Then, positioning him/herself behind the client, theuser inserts the tip of the ski pole underneath the arm-pit of theclient and rotates the ski pole to position the bar horizontally acrossthe client's waist, resulting in the situation depicted in FIG. 9. Asimilar manipulation is done to tow a person.

When there is a load on the bar, the torque produced at the pivot of thehinge-clamp causes a significant amount of friction between thehinge-clamp and the ski pole shaft, preventing the hinge-clamp fromsliding down the ski pole shaft (towards the basket). Similarly, theleverage provided by the bar allows the user to easily disengage thehinge-clamp by applying the opposite torque (i.e. by pivoting the bar tothe closed position).

Alternative Embodiment

One possible alternative embodiment of the device is shown in FIGS. 10through 15. In this embodiment the hinge-clamp (labeled 15 in FIG. 10and called a knuckle hinge-clamp hereafter to avoid confusion with thehinge-clamp in the preferred embodiment), is designed as a full-mortise,six-knuckle, plain bearing hinge, with the bar 2 serving as the pin forthe hinge. The top 16 and bottom 17 knuckles of the knuckle hinge-clampare labeled in FIG. 10. The top knuckle, and every second knucklethereafter, are fixed to the top leaf 18, while all other knuckles arefixed to the bottom leaf 19. The top and bottom leaves close around theski pole shaft, as shown in FIG. 10, and an elastic strap (not shown inFIG. 10 but shown in later figures) attaches to the top and bottom leafpins 20 and 21, respectively, to keep the leaves of the knucklehinge-clamp closed.

FIG. 11 shows an expanded isometric view of the knuckle hinge-clamp. Inthe closed position, the ski pole shaft is maintained in the parallelski pole slot, 25. This slot is has a semi-circular cross section formedfrom two quarter-circular cuts in the top and bottom leaves. FIG. 11also shows the top 22 and bottom 23 shelves that fit together when theknuckle hinge-clamp is closed. When the device is in the open position,these shelves enclose the ski pole shaft in the transverse ski pole slot26, which is between the two leaves of the knuckle hinge-clamp. The topand bottom leaves are held together by an elastic strap 24.

In FIG. 12 the device is in the open position. The bottom knuckle 17 islonger than the other knuckles and has a slot cut into it to allow theski pole shaft to pass through.

FIG. 13 shows another isometric view of the device in the open position.In this view we can see how the ski pole shaft fits into the transverseski pole slot 26.

FIG. 14 shows several isometric views of the knuckle hinge-clamp withthe bar removed. The knuckle hinge-clamp is partially open in theseviews. In panels 14C and 14D the top and bottom knuckles are labeled 16and 17, respectively. The bottom knuckle is different from the otherknuckles in two respects: First, it is longer in the axial direction andis cut by the transverse ski pole slot 26 (see panel 14A) so that itfits around the ski pole shaft when the device is in the open position(see FIG. 12). Second, it's bore does not transpierce the entireknuckle, as can be seen in FIG. 14A, which shows the solid underside ofthe bottom knuckle 17.

FIG. 15 shows a view with the hidden lines exposed of the bottom leaf ofthe knuckle hinge-clamp. The bore that transpierces the two upperknuckles of this leaf does not transpierce the bottom knuckle, asindicated by the dashed line labeled 27. This constitutes the bar stopwhich prevents the bar from sliding through the knuckles of the knucklehinge-clamp. It is also where the bar is glued to the bottom knuckle,preventing the bar from rotating about its axis (note that the otherleaf of the knuckle hinge-clamp can still rotate about the bar).

The operation of this embodiment is the same as for the preferredembodiment.

CONCLUSIONS, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE OF INVENTION

The invention described herein integrated with a ski pole provides asafe and easy way for an experienced skier to tow or brake children orother inexperienced skiers. The invention is lightweight, robust, and iseasily attached and detached from a ski pole. When attached to a skipole in the closed position, it does not encumber the skier to any greatextent. It is simple to put into use and to carry when not in use (itcan stay attached, in the closed position, to the ski pole), and may beeasily passed from one person to another (one parent or ski instructorto another, for example).

While the above description contains many specificities, these shouldnot be construed as limitations on the scope of the invention, butrather as an exemplification of two preferred embodiments thereof.Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be determined by theembodiments illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legalequivalents.

1. A ski pole tow bar assembly, comprising: a. ski pole; b. a tow barhaving a distal end and a proximal end; c. a means for pivotallyattaching said proximal end of said tow bar to said ski pole; and, d. ameans for holding said tow bar in a locked position when rotated into aparallel position with said ski pole.
 2. The ski pole tow bar, asrecited in claim 1, wherein said means for pivotally attaching saidproximal end of said tow bar is a hinge-clamp body attached to saidproximal end of said tow bar, said body includes a cavity that extendstransversely through said body, said cavity capable of receiving asection of said ski pole extending transversely over said body, saidcavity being aligned on said body so that said tow bar is perpendicularto a section of a ski pole extending through said cavity enabling saidbody to rotate approximately 90 degrees on a ski pole extending throughsaid cavity.
 3. The ski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 2, whereinsaid means for holding said tow bar in a locked position parallel tosaid ski pole is a latch body attached to said distal end of said bar,said latch body including a pole slot capable of receiving a ski polewhen said hinge-clamp body is attached to a ski pole and rotated so thatsaid bar is aligned parallel to the ski pole.
 4. The ski pole tow bar,as recited in claim 1, wherein said means for pivotally attaching saidproximal end of said tow bar is a knuckle hinge-clamp comprising twoleaves pivotally connected together when closed, surrounding said skipole, said two leaves each including a pin that are engaged by a strapto hold said leaves in a closed position around said ski pole.
 5. Theski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 4, wherein each said leaf includesan elongated, quarter circular void, when said leaves are closed aroundsaid ski pole, said ski pole fits inside said voids.
 6. The ski pole towbar, as recited in claim 4, wherein said means for holding said tow barin a locked position parallel to said ski pole is a latch body attachedto said distal end of said bar, said latch body including a pole slotcapable of receiving a ski pole when said knuckle hinge-clamp body isattached to a ski pole and rotated so that said bar is aligned parallelto said ski pole.
 7. The ski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 6,wherein each said leaf includes an elongated, quarter circular void,when said leaves are closed around said ski pole, said ski pole fitsinside said voids.
 8. The ski pole tow bar assembly, comprising: a. abar having a proximal end and a distal end; b. a hinge-clamp bodyattached to said proximal end of said bar, said body includes a cavitythat extends transversely through said body, said cavity capable ofreceiving a section of a ski pole extending transversely over said body,said cavity being aligned on said body so that said bar is perpendicularto a section of a ski pole extending through said cavity enabling saidbody to rotate approximately 90 degrees on a ski pole extending throughsaid cavity; c. a lock cap selectively attached to said cavity to holdsaid body on a ski pole; and, d. a latch body attached to said distalend of said bar, said latch body including a pole slot capable ofreceiving a ski pole when said hinge-clamp body is attached to a skipole and rotated so that said bar is aligned parallel to the ski pole.9. The ski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 8, wherein said bar isapproximately 18 inches in length.
 10. The ski pole tow bar, as recitedin claim 8, wherein said hinge-clamp body is made of plastic.
 11. Theski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 9, wherein said hinge-clamp bodyis made of plastic.
 12. The ski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 8,wherein said latch body is made of plastic.
 13. The ski pole tow bar, asrecited in claim 9, wherein said latch body is made of plastic.
 14. Theski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 10, wherein said latch body ismade of plastic.
 15. The ski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 6,wherein said pole slot is approximately ⅝ inches in diameter.
 16. Theski pole tow bar, as recited in claim 15, wherein said bar isapproximately 18 inches in length.
 17. The ski pole tow bar, as recitedin claim 16, wherein said bar is made of aluminum.
 18. A ski pole towbar assembly, comprising: a. a bar having a proximal end and a distalend; b. mean for pivotally attaching said bar to a ski pole, said meansfor pivotally said bar to a ski pole including means for enabling saidbar to pivot approximately 90 degrees between a perpendicularly alignedposition and a parallel position on a ski pole; and, c. latch bodyattached to said distal end of said bar, said latch body including apole slot capable of receiving a ski pole when said bar is rotated in aposition parallel to the ski pole.